Readers vote Mr. Hockey as best Detroit sports nickname

Jun. 30, 2013

Red Wings legend Gordie Howe / Associated Press

Written by

Kirkland Crawford

Detroit Free Press Sports Writer

Detroit sports fans have been having this debate for years now: Howe or Yzerman. We helped settle at least one aspect of the discussion.

The finals of our latest online voting tournament for the best nickname in Detroit sports history featured No. 9 vs. No. 19. While some may think the Internet is for the "young kid," everyone still respects the 85-year-old legend.

Mr. Hockey won with 68% of nearly 2,800 votes.

Our sports department is also learning that the Red Wings fans dominate online: Ken Daniels won our state's best broadcaster vote, Claude Lemieux was named the most hated opponent and the '97 Wings, captained by Yzerman, was voted as our favorite championship team ever.